


After Death, New Life Begins

by renaissancefleabag



Category: Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (TV 2018)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Cuddling & Snuggling, F/F, Fluff City 5000, Fluff and Angst, Mentions of Blood, Minor Violence, Nightmares, Panic Attack, Soft Kisses, With A Side Of Smut If You Squint, i'm SOFT
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-29
Updated: 2020-01-29
Packaged: 2021-02-27 14:33:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,343
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22458805
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/renaissancefleabag/pseuds/renaissancefleabag
Summary: After the final showdown with the pagans, Zelda is tormented by the images her mind conjures while she sleeps. She calls out for help, and it arrives.
Relationships: Zelda Spellman & Mambo Marie, Zelda Spellman & Marie Le Fleur, Zelda Spellman/Mambo Marie, Zelda Spellman/Marie Le Fleur
Comments: 26
Kudos: 215





	After Death, New Life Begins

**Author's Note:**

> This has major spoilers for Part 3, so don't read if you haven't watched Part 3 yet. Or, carry on if you don't care about spoilers ;-)

Zelda tossed beneath her covers, visions of her own death flashing before her. It wasn’t the death she had seen with Edward and Hilda, in limbo. No. It was far worse. She stood in the corner of the morgue and watched as Faustus stood over her dead body, and Marie’s. Zelda had no idea how she had witnessed the deaths, but her brain recreated the scene in perfect detail. She stood, sick with terror, watching the horrific scene play out over and over again. Zelda saw Faustus rush over to Marie, and saw genuine fear present in the womans’ kind eyes. She received a brutal slash across her neck, too soon for her to react, and collapsed. Zelda’s heart caught as she watched Marie crumple to the floor, lifeless, with a glassy look in her eyes. Bile rose in her throat, and she genuinely felt ill. 

_No no no no she doesn’t deserve this. I’m the one who deserves to die._

Zelda sat up—well, the dream version of herself, who was unconscious on the morgue table not a few minutes prior. Faustus stood in the doorway, knife in hand. The blade was coated in blood, not Zelda’s. He glared at her, fingers tightening around the blade. Zelda saw herself look at him in shock, and uttered his name. Faustus said nothing, lunged forward and stabbed her in the throat. Zelda watched as she laid back down on the table, life draining out of her body. The dream repeated again, and again, while Zelda stood helpless, watching the scene.

She couldn’t breathe. The panic attack spread, like vines snaking across Zelda’s chest as she slept. Seeing herself die was one thing, but seeing Marie die was too much, and Zelda didn’t know why. The air felt like it was being sucked out of the room, and Zelda struggled with each breath. She knew she had to wake up, had to shake herself out of it. But she was alone that evening. Hilda had gone down the hall to a spare bedroom, for Dr. Cee decided to stay the night. 

_I’m dying again, and there is nothing I can do to stop it_

The dream altered a bit this time around. Zelda saw Mary Wardwell’s face before her, heard the sound of the gunshot, saw herself lying in a pool of her own blood. There was a flash of light and Zelda was back in the morgue, and saw Marie die, saw herself die. It was all too much, too _real_ , and she wasn’t sure what had been a dream and what really happened. Chills broke out over her body as she fought against the panic. She could almost taste her own blood in her throat, as she fought for breaths of air.

_Please! Somebody help me!_

Zelda wanted to snap herself out of it, to wake up from the disorienting nightmare and realize that it was all just a bad dream and none of it was real. 

Her breath still came in uneven pants, and her heartbeat sounded like a drum in her ears. Zelda was starting to worry, but had no way of pulling herself back from the edge. And then, something changed. There was something, _someone_ there.

_“It’s okay, chérie. You are safe.”_

Zelda was still asleep, knew she was alone, but the voice was all very real. The familiar, accented tone washed over Zelda like warm, gentle waves, lapping at the shore of a beach. She went towards the voice, the sound pleasant, and comforting.

_“Keep breathing. There, that’s it.”_

Zelda trembled, and tried to obey, willed herself into a calmer state. She kept breathing, focused on the reassuring voice and eventually felt the panic starting to recede. It was a slow process, but she could feel herself lowering down from the precipice.

With a gulp of air, Zelda shot upright in her bed, and looked around her bedroom. She was alone, but she could have _sworn_ that someone was just there. 

“Hello?....Marie?” 

Zelda spoke into the stillness of her dark bedroom, the only sound in the room her heartbeat loud in her ears. There was no response, and Zelda’s shoulders drooped. 

_Of course. How could I be so foolish._

A small part of her hoped that Marie truly was there, that she wasn’t alone with her thoughts. 

_Looks like it’s going to be another sleepless night…_

Disappointed, Zelda made to lie back down, when there was a faint knock at her bedroom door. She froze, certain she was hearing things; but, the knock sounded again, and came with…

“Zelda?”

_Marie?_

Zelda’s heart skipped a beat and she felt a flutter in her belly as she remembered the kiss they had shared earlier. How could she have forgotten? Marie stayed with Zelda while she navigated limbo, looked after her. And then Zelda finally got her alone, got the chance to thank her. Her gracious heart felt full in her chest as Marie warned her of something much more sinister coming to Greendale. Zelda had to force herself to pay attention and listen to the words falling from Marie’s lips. 

_Focus._

Marie continued on, and told Zelda that she needed to harness her coven’s maternal _pouvoir_ , to ready them for war. Something shifted inside of Zelda as she listened to the voodoo priestess speak, saw the way she looked sitting in the glow of the firelight. Her skin was rich, beautiful, her eyes warm and almond-shaped. Zelda let her gaze drift down to her full lips, and felt a tug in her stomach. She was _breathtaking_ , and Zelda didn’t want her to leave.

_“Am I to take it that you’ll be staying on?”_

Zelda blurted out her request, but thankfully it came out with her usual confidence and poise.

_“Only if I am welcome, ma chérie.”_

Emboldened by whiskey, lust, or both, Zelda had kissed Marie, her heart overflowing with gratitude. Marie returned Zelda’s kiss, set her hand against the side of Zelda’s face, and Zelda pulled her closer. They held that intimate moment, kept moving their lips against each others’ until Zelda had to stop, because she had gotten so worked up. Marie was understanding, gentle, and let Zelda take her time. 

Calmer, and much warmer, Zelda heard the knock at the door again, and was shaken from her pleasant thoughts.

“Come in, Marie” Zelda called out, her voice shaky and rough. She cleared her throat and spoke again. “You can come in.”

The door opened silently, and Marie stepped into the room, energy flowing through her. Zelda could sense her magic in the air as soon as she arrived, but needed to see the woman for herself. 

“It really is you…” Zelda said, eyes not leaving Marie’s face as she made her way through the dark purple light of the room, to Zelda’s bedside. Zelda scooted over, and Marie sat down on the edge of the bed, facing her. She was even more beautiful now than she was earlier, Zelda thought. She wore a silky, peach-colored nightgown, and smelled pleasant, like soap. 

“Of course it is me, _chérie_. I heard you calling out to me in your sleep.”

“Oh…” Zelda blushed, thankful the darkened bedroom could hide her surely red cheeks. 

“Are you okay?”

Zelda felt Marie’s palm against her cheek, and the warm flutter happened in her belly again. It was the same feeling she got when Marie first shook her hand, when she pulled her close and traced her fingers over her skin.

“I, I…” Zelda was suddenly at a loss for words as she became aware of the intimacy of their situation, of the setting. Marie swept her hand over the side of Zelda’s face, her fingertips whisper soft against Zelda’s cheek. She brushed Zelda’s now messy curls back and down, her hand coming to rest against the side of Zelda’s neck. Zelda’s lips parted when she felt Marie’s thumb brush over the corner of her mouth, and she let out the breath she didn’t realize she was holding.

“I was,” Zelda swallowed, and licked her lips. “I had a dream, and it was quite bad.”

“Tell me.” Marie swept her thumb over Zelda’s lips once more, and Zelda’s eyes fluttered closed.

“It was _horrible_. It started after I got shot, and I was down in the morgue. I was watching myself, saw you there holding my hand.” Zelda shuddered, and took a shaky breath. Marie lifted Zelda’s hand to her mouth, and kissed her palm.

“I saw Faustus _kill_ you, and I couldn’t do anything to stop him, to save you. I was completely powerless…and then he killed me. It kept repeating over and over again, until I started to panic. Then, you were there, and then I woke up.”

Zelda looked up and tears rolled down her cheeks, a sob rising in her throat. She hadn’t cried, after all that they had been through. She didn’t stop to let herself have the moment of catharsis she so desperately needed, didn’t have the time. But now she did, and Zelda broke down, her shoulders shaking with each gasp. 

_“Zelda…”_

Marie pulled Zelda into an embrace, and Zelda’s head went to her shoulder, like a child. The weight of the past few weeks sat heavy on her chest, a pile of leaden, sorrowful bricks. With each sob, it felt like someone was removing a brick from the pile. Zelda grasped at Marie’s clothes, holding onto her for dear life. 

_“Shh_ , it’s okay _chérie._ You’re safe now.” Marie rubbed Zelda’s back, and snuck a kiss to the side of her head. Zelda’s tears were wet against Marie’s skin, and she continued to cry, unable to catch herself. Marie simply held her and rocked her from side to side, patiently consoling her. Zelda’s hiccuped sobs soon died down to quiet gasps, as she shook in Marie’s arms, her chest feeling like it had been split open. The longer Zelda remained in her arms, the more relaxed she felt. 

“Thank you,” Zelda whispered, slowly unwrapping her arms from around Marie’s waist. She was embarrassed, but was too tired to care. She wiped her eyes, and stared down into her lap, her white nightgown a pale, icy blue in the moonlight. 

“You are welcome, Zelda.” Marie waited calmly, giving Zelda the space to talk when ready. Zelda folded her arms across her chest, and shivered, the room slightly chilled. 

“Thank you for everything, Marie.” Zelda’s eyes were wet, and shone in the faint light. She looked back and forth between the priestesses eyes, and bit her bottom lip. Marie leaned in slowly, breaking eye contact to look at Zelda’s mouth. Her lips were soft against Zelda’s, pushing gently but not forcefully. 

Zelda leaned into the kiss and let out a sigh. Before tonight, it had been _ages_ since she was last with a woman. Kissing Marie reminded her of why she loved it so much. Women were all soft and warm, rounded out where men were rough, and they tasted _divine_.

_I could get used to this,_ Zelda thought, smiling into the kiss. Marie broke the kiss when she felt Zelda smiling, and rested her hands on Zelda’s bare shoulders.

“Do you feel better now _chérie?”_

Zelda did. She felt like a bone-crushing weight had been lifted from her shoulders, and she was ready to lie down again, to go back to sleep.

“I do.” Zelda yawned, and stretched, quickly covering her mouth. “Excuse me.”

“You’re tired,” Marie said softly, as she swept some of Zelda’s hair behind her ears. She reached around Zelda to fluff up her pillow, and patted it. Zelda scooted back and sat up against the headboard, blinking.

“Wait here for a minute,” Marie said, dropping a kiss to Zelda’s forehead. Marie disappeared from the bedroom, and Zelda sank back against the pillows and let here head fall back. Everything was uncertain in her life now. She worried for Sabrina, and whether or not she would do something foolish again and bring even more trouble to Greendale. She worried about Faustus, wherever he was, and if he would bring even more harm her family. She worried about the future of her small coven, weakened by recent events, but still standing strong. Tired tears rolled down Zelda’s cheeks without her even realizing they had fallen, and she wiped them away just as Marie re-entered the room.

Zelda swallowed her anxiety and tried to put on her usual brave face. But Marie saw right through her. She had since the moment they met. Zelda recalled how Marie told her she could see her _mèt tèt_ , how they were both more alike than she realized. Marie was strong, quirky, but extremely likeable. She breezed into any situation with ease, and reassured everyone. Where Marie was confident, and appeared to be self-assured, Zelda was insecure and lonely. But if there was one thing Zelda noticed, it was that Marie had been there for her coven all throughout their trials. Ever since her arrival she stayed close by, trying to help, to protect. She didn’t even _know_ their coven, and yet she treated them like they were her own. It was admirable. What stood out the most was that she was there for Zelda, went out of her way to protect her when no one else was available or able to do so. It made Zelda’s chest grow warm, and she smiled through her tears. 

“Have some of this.” Marie held out a glass, and Zelda sniffed cautiously. Marie let out a soft laugh at the lok on Zelda’s face.

“It’s just water, though I can make you an elixir to help you fall asleep, if you want.”

“Mmn, no thank you.” Zelda wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, the glass now empty. She didn’t feel like taking anything extra. Her fatigue and worry for the future both were enough to keep her in bed for quite some time.

Marie took the glass from Zelda’s hand, and set it aside somewhere. Zelda didn’t care, and instead was thinking about what was next for all of them. 

_How many days of normalcy will we have before we have to deal with the next enemy? Will tonight be one of the last nights I can get a normal night of sleep? Will Marie truly stay on to help, or will she eventually leave too?_

“Zelda I can almost _hear_ you thoughts.”

Zelda looked at Marie, fear in her eyes. She was scared but intrigued by Marie’s gifts, not all of which she was familiar yet. She wasn’t touching her like she did earlier that week, when she got a look into Zelda’s essence. _Surely_ she couldn’t _see_ what she was actually thinking. 

“You can read my mind?”

“No...you just get this look on your face, very _concentré_. “It gives you away, Zelda.” Marie sat back down on the edge of the bed, and gently patted Zelda’s thigh.

“Lie down. I’ll stay with you until you fall asleep.”

Marie stood from her spot on the bed and lifted up Zelda’s covers, as Zelda shifted into a lying position. She turned onto her side, with her back facing Marie.

“Are you getting in?” 

Marie slid under the covers, and moved over so that her front was pressed up against Zelda’s back. Zelda took a deep breath, and shivered when Marie wrapped an arm around Zelda’s waist. Zelda could feel herself going red when Marie pressed a kiss to the back of her neck.

This felt right, it felt _good_ . True, they hardly knew each other, but Zelda felt good for once. She felt _safe_ , like her needs were being taken care of.

“You are thinking again, _chérie_. What is it?”

Zelda turned around so that she was facing Marie, and rested her hand on the pillow, underneath her cheek. Marie sat her hand against the small of Zelda’s back and rubbed back and forth, in a soothing and sleep-inducing manner.

“I am just worried, that’s all.”

“About?”

“The future. About what will become of my coven, my family...us.” Zelda’s eyes darted away, and she blinked several times, nerves choking her up. Zelda inhaled and looked back at Marie when she felt the woman’s fingertips smoothing over her cheek.

“You don’t need to worry yourself with these things, especially not right now.” She kept stroking Zelda’s cheek, sending warmth to Zelda’s belly for what had to have been the twentieth time that evening. 

“But…”

“Your coven cannot fail, Zelda, not with you leading it. You are more powerful than you realize, Zelda Spellman.” Marie’s pointer finger drifted down to Zelda’s chin, tracing back and forth over the cleft there. 

“You have to harness that power that I know you have, deep inside of you, and believe in yourself.”

There was a beat, and silence.

Zelda wondered if Marie could hear her heartbeat as her thoughts drifted back to the resurrection of Hilda. It had been one of the most terrifying moments in Zelda’s life, even more so than being faced with her own death repeatedly. She didn’t feel very powerful then, when she thought they had failed. But then Hilda’s hand burst through the soil, and Zelda had never been happier to see a muddy hand coming out of the Cain Pit. 

_But that was a one-time thing. Surely I can’t…_

Self-doubt crept in like the seasoned intruder it was, and Zelda tried to ignore it. Marie seemed to be the only person who could cut through that, and made her _truly_ believe that she would be okay. The only other person to have gotten through to her like that was Edward.

_Has Edward been guiding me to Marie all along?_

“You can do this, Zelda” Marie spoke into the stillness between them, gently drawing Zelda’s attention back to the present moment. “I am here to help you. But right now, you need—”

Zelda cut Marie off with a kiss, a surge of affection swelling in her heart. She tried to put every ounce of gratefulness into the kiss, hoping Marie could sense her feelings. Butterflies danced in Zelda’s belly as she leant further into Marie, her lips supple and welcoming. Marie pulled Zelda closer, until their bodies were touching. Zelda’s nipples were hard, scraping against the soft fabric of her nightgown, and dampness gathered between her legs. Zelda needed to be _closer_ , needed more contact. She moaned into the kiss, and slid a leg up over Marie’s, trying her best not to push her aching center against the woman’s leg. Marie sensed her need, and swept Zelda up into her arms, rolling onto her back so that Zelda lay on top of her. Zelda broke the kiss, coming up for air. She ran a fingertip over Marie’s lips and smiled, letting out a bashful chuckle. Marie’s hands ran up and down Zelda’s back, comforting, as always. 

“Thank you for coming here, Marie. And for believing in me...for staying with me, for _everything_ .” Zelda cupped Marie’s face between her hands, and kissed her on each cheek. She leaned back down, and tilted her head slightly, her now swollen lips meeting with Marie’s once more. Marie leaned up into Zelda, opening her mouth further. A few seconds more went by, and Zelda couldn’t help but swipe her tongue out, deepening the kiss. Marie opened her mouth further, and Zelda absolutely _melted_. She grasped Marie’s chin in her hand, and tried not to grind down against her. Zelda kissed her again, before pulling back slowly, her head now spinning. She rested her forehead against Marie’s, their breaths coming out in hot puffs in-between them. 

“Wow...” Marie uttered, licking her lips. _“Magnifique.”_

Zelda blushed, and slid down to tuck her face against the side of Marie’s neck. 

“I think you are magnificent too. Marvelous, actually.”

Marie was back to stroking the small of Zelda’s back, her other arm holding Zelda close.

“Stay till the morning, okay?” Zelda slurred, drifting off with her face pressed against Marie.

“I will _chérie,_ I will.”

**Author's Note:**

> And just like that, we have my very first Zelda/Marie fic. I hope you all enjoyed it. I can't wait to explore these two characters even further, as their storyline unfolds. 
> 
> Thank you all for reading!


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